Toolkit InterAmerican Human Rights Indigenous Women Notes 1 to 4

ROBERT F.
KENNEDY
HUMAN
RIGHTS

Foreword
to ‘Indigenous women’s rights and the
Inter-American system: a toolkit on mechanisms’
By Kerry Kennedy

Dear friends,
The Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights is proud to join the Forest Peoples
Programme in publishing this guide to working through the Inter-American System to
strengthen the rights of indigenous women.
In 1966, my father, Robert Kennedy, said that “those with the courage to enter the moral conlict
will ind themselves with companions in every corner of the globe.” The RFK Center’s Partners for
Human Rights program looks to fulill that pledge by standing alongside the brave women and
men who work on the front line of the struggle for justice – women and men like you.
Advocacy before regional human rights mechanisms is a crucial part of that struggle. This guide
is designed to help you make the most forceful and efective case possible before such bodies,
explaining everything from how to submit a petition to what to expect during a hearing.

The RFK Center is deeply committed to the rights of indigenous women around the world.
With our partners at the Tlachinollan Center for Human Rights in Mexico, we have advocated
at the local and regional levels on behalf of indigenous Mexican women who have been raped
and tortured by members of the military. In just the past year, we joined with Tlachinollan to
build schools for Mexico’s indigenous children, who are too often denied their right to a basic
education. And through our Training Institute in Florence, we convene activists and defenders
like you to share experiences and learn new approaches to defending human rights.

By now, we know that empowering women is one of the keys to improving the health,
prosperity, and well-being of communities from the American Gulf Coast to West Africa.
Indigenous women face particularly strong opposition in their quest for equality. The RFK
Center and the Forest Peoples Programme hope that this guide will help both indigenous
activists and their partners as they work to realize a more just and peaceful future.
Thank you for your commitment to justice and human rights.
Warmly,

Kerry Kennedy
President
Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights

Introduction
to the Toolkit on the
Inter-American Human
Rights System for
Indigenous Women
Communications Programme organised by the Fundación Yanama. Colombia.

Author: Ellen-Rose Kambel / Editors: Valerie Couillard and Andrea Galindo
Indigenous women in the Americas
There are an estimated 40–50 million indigenous
persons living in the member states of the
Organization of American States (OAS), which unites
all 35 independent states of North, Central and South
America.1 Indigenous women live in vastly diferent
circumstances, ranging from the dry mountain ranges
of the Andes, to the humid rainforests of the Amazon
and the tropical islands of the Caribbean. They speak
hundreds of diferent languages. Many indigenous
women live in rural areas, taking care of their children,
participating in subsistence activities such as shifting

cultivation, hunting and gathering, and making
handicrafts. Whilst most of these tasks are done by
women, men and older girls and boys also share roles,
in diferent ways. An International Labour Organization
(ILO) study has shown that indigenous women’s roles
are rapidly changing. They are increasingly working in
self-employment or as wage earners in both rural and
urban areas. Rural–urban migration is growing fast,
posing new challenges for indigenous women:
Urban migration has ofered greater personal
autonomy to some indigenous women, who are able
to earn their own money and free themselves from
the sometimes strict control of their families and
communities, as well as from gender discrimination
experienced in the access to and control over land and
property. However many indigenous women enter the
urban labour force with little or no formal education and
ind themselves confronted with many new challenges,
including adjusting to the urban lifestyle and balancing
a heavy workload with the responsibilities for their

families as (often single) mothers. In addition they are
often confronted with racist prejudice from members
INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM: A TOOLKIT ON MECHANISMS

Photo: Jakeline Romero Epiayu

of the dominant, non-indigenous groups, including
co-workers and employers. For example, indigenous
women wearing their native dress are ridiculed and
subject to verbal and sometimes physical harassment in
public and in the workplace.2
The gendered impact of natural resource
exploitation
Over the past 30 years, there has been signiicant
progress in the legal recognition of indigenous rights
in Latin America. However, massive and ongoing
deprivation, and destruction of indigenous lands by largescale extractive industries, continue to be a common
experience among indigenous peoples. Because of the
importance of their lands (including for those who have
been forced to migrate to urban areas), protection of

collective territorial rights remains the central issue for
both indigenous women and men:
For Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous women,
exercising our rights – both as Indigenous
Peoples and as women – depends on securing
legal recognition of our collective ancestral
territories. Our territories are the basis of our
identities, our cultures, our economies and our
traditions. Indigenous rights include the right to
full recognition as Peoples with our own worldview
and traditions, our own territories, and our own
modes of organization within nation-states; the
right to self-determination through our own
systems of autonomy or self-government based
on a communal property framework; and the right
to control, develop and utilize our own natural
resources. Indigenous Peoples are entitled to
these rights in addition to the rights guaranteed
1

to all individuals by the full body of internationally
agreed-upon human rights laws and standards.3
Because indigenous women have a range of diferent
roles and responsibilities, the impacts of loss of their territories and the efects of resource extraction on their lands
are diferent to those of men:
• Indigenous women generally bear the main responsibility for collecting water and irewood for cooking in
rural areas. When water sources become polluted or
disrupted, or when access to forests is cut of, women
are forced to walk greater distances. This increases
their workload, limits their ability to meet their families’
daily subsistence requirements and increases their
need for cash to buy water or fuel.4
• While (young) men may be able to gain income through
(temporary) employment, women generally have
few opportunities in the ‘male’ logging and mining
industries. As men are away for prolonged periods of
time and are no longer able or willing to clear women’s
forest gardens, and to go out hunting or ishing,
indigenous women become increasingly economically
dependent on their husbands for cash income.5

• The loss of indigenous women’s traditional subsistence
activities combined with the inlux of large numbers
of transient male workers who seek paid sex work
may force indigenous women to become sex workers
themselves.6 This increases women’s risk of contracting
STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) and jeopardises
their reproductive health, as well as the health of their
newborn babies.
• The introduction of extractive industries is often
accompanied by a rise in various forms of violence
against indigenous women. Women who protest
against mining companies may face physical as well
as sexual harassment from company or State security
guards. A rise in violence resulting from domestic
disputes and increased alcohol and drug abuse is
also commonly associated with the introduction of
extractive industries in indigenous communities.7
Indigenous women who are victims of violence
face particular barriers when seeking access to
justice, including police unwillingness to carry out

investigations and protect them, due to racial and
ethnic discrimination, lack of economic resources to
hire legal representation, and language barriers within
the state judicial system.8

2

• Finally, indigenous women and their speciic concerns
and priorities are frequently excluded from consultation
and consent procedures about resource extraction.
This may be due to traditional gender roles, but may
also be caused by a misguided presumption among
government and business representatives that
decisions are made exclusively by male chiefs or male
heads of households. Indigenous women also have
a distinct educational and linguistic disadvantage
compared to men: women are more likely than men
to be illiterate and to be monolingual (speaking only
their indigenous language).9 They are thus excluded
from key information about the impacts of resource

exploitation, hampering their efective participation in
decision making.
Addressing indigenous women’s human rights
A major challenge when addressing indigenous
women’s issues from a human rights viewpoint is that
the legal concepts that form the basis of conventional
human rights standards, including equality and nondiscrimination, do not relect the experience and
aspirations of indigenous women.
Indigenous women sufer discrimination for a
number of reasons that overlap in their lives;
they are discriminated against because of their
gender, their ethnicity and their position in society
as women in poverty (their social class). These
overlapping factors deepen the discrimination
they sufer which means that they experience
discrimination in a diferent way to women from
other sectors of society.10
The Inter-American human rights system was never
designed to address the human rights of indigenous
peoples, much less of indigenous women. In fact, the

system’s primary legal instruments, the American
Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man (‘American
Declaration’) and the American Convention on Human
Rights (‘American Convention’) do not mention
‘indigenous peoples’ at all. Yet, achieving equality on the
basis of race and sex is among the principles of the OAS
Charter (Article 3). During the past 20 years, the two main
organs of the Inter-American human rights system – the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (‘IACHR’
or ‘Inter-American Commission’) and the Inter-American
Court of Human rights (‘Inter-American Court’) – have
shown themselves to be increasingly open to and
creative in addressing indigenous peoples’ human
rights concerns.

INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM: A TOOLKIT ON MECHANISMS

2008 – Interview held on Radio Qawinaqel in the programme of the Poqomam Linguistic Community of Academia de lenguas Mayas de Guatemala (ALMG).
Photo: ALMG.

For example, the right to individual property, protected
under Article 21 of the American Convention on Human
Rights, has been interpreted to encompass the close
relationship – including intangible elements – between
indigenous peoples and their lands.11 The Inter-American
Court has stated that failing to recognise the diferent
ways indigenous peoples use and enjoy their property,
including communal ways, ‘would make the protection
granted by Article 21 of the Convention meaningless for
millions of individuals’.12
In addition, in recent years, the Inter-American Court
has judged several cases of violence against indigenous
women.13 Furthermore, the Inter-American Commission
has organised a number of thematic hearings on the human rights of indigenous women14 and published several
reports on discrimination against women – including
indigenous women – with regard to maternal health care,
access to justice for victims of violence and the right to
education, among other issues.15
About this Toolkit
In order for the Inter-American human rights system
to adequately recognise, protect and fulil the human
rights of indigenous women, it is necessary for
Introduction to the Toolkit on the Inter-American Human Rights System for Indigenous Women

indigenous women to engage with the system, to
make their voices heard and to tell their stories with
all their complexities. This Toolkit, which contains a
series of Information Notes explaining diferent aspects
of the Inter-American system, is designed to help
indigenous women and their advocates to use the
system efectively. It is the result of a collective efort
by indigenous women from, among other countries,
Argentina, Costa Rica, Chile, Canada, Colombia,
Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua,
Panama and Paraguay. They have worked together for
many years to raise awareness about the opportunities
ofered by the Inter-American human rights system
with regard to the rights of indigenous women.
Between 2011 and 2014, Forest Peoples Programme,
with the inancial support of Oxfam Novib, worked
with indigenous women from the above-mentioned
countries to create this training resource, which
can in the future be updated and further developed
by indigenous women and indigenous peoples
organisations.
Contents of the Toolkit
Information Note #1 provides background information
on the OAS, its structure and the main human rights
3

bodies of the Inter-American human rights system: the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the
Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
The Inter-American human rights system comprises
several treaties and declarations which can be used
to support advocacy activities. Information Note #2
describes the key legal instruments: the American
Declaration, the American Convention, the Protocol of
San Salvador, the Convention of Belém do Pará and the
Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It
also includes documents and resolutions by the political
bodies of the OAS which may be relevant to indigenous
women.
Supervision of member states’ compliance with human
rights norms takes place mainly through a system of
reporting, on-site visits and court decisions in response
to complaints submitted by individuals and groups.
Information Notes #3–6 explain how the supervisory
procedures operate, including details on submitting
individual complaints.
Filing a legal complaint is not the only avenue open
to indigenous women. Information Notes #4a and
4b discuss the diferent Rapporteurships that focus
on speciic areas of human rights law, including a
Rapporteurship on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
and one on the Rights of Women.
Information Note #7 analyses decisions and recommendations of the various bodies of the Inter-American
human rights system, in particular the Inter-American
Commission and the Court.
The Inter-American Commission of Women is the
principal forum within the OAS for creating policy on the
advancement of women’s rights and gender equality.
Information Note #8 describes other forums that can
be used to advocate for indigenous women’s rights. The

4

mechanisms to monitor compliance with the Protocol
of San Salvador, which addresses economic, social and
cultural rights, and the Inter-American Commission on
Women are explained in this document, which also gives
a brief overview of the mechanisms available at the
United Nations level.
Other actions to ensure that the rights of
indigenous women are respected
In addition to the actions made possible through
the Inter-American human rights system, it is equally
important that indigenous women, NGOs and other civil
society organisations become involved at the domestic
level. Actions undertaken simultaneously at the national
level (within the country) and at the regional level (the
Inter-American Commission in particular, and the InterAmerican system in general) will make an impact and are
more likely to bring about the desired changes. As part of
this strategy, it is important to note that interventions by
the Commission and other organs of the system can help
to further the State’s actions in achieving their previously
set objectives.
Being heard at the government level
One approach should be to include actions undertaken
with diferent State bodies, including each of its powers:
Executive, Legislative, and Judicial; the bodies speciically
involved with women’s rights, indigenous peoples’
and human rights in general, such as Presidential
Commissions, Secretariats, Boards, etc.; Ombudsmen,
and other institutions that may be relevant. Also included
should be organisations across the spectrum of civil
society, such as those directly related to indigenous
peoples, women’s rights and human rights in general,
as well as media, press, academics and other private
entities whose input may be conducive to achieving
the objectives.
Below are additional suggestions of activities which could
lead to real changes.

INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM: A TOOLKIT ON MECHANISMS

STAY INFORMED
In order to be efective in defending the rights of indigenous women, it is essential to have knowledge of:
• The regional and international framework in place to guarantee the protection of the rights of
indigenous women and peoples;
• Public policies, initiatives, laws and regulations that are in violation of the rights of indigenous women;
• The actions, omissions, practices and customs that violate indigenous women’s rights, despite
legislation that can protect them.
TO RECEIVE UPDATES FROM THE COMMISSION AND THE COURT:
• Subscribe to receive email updates from the Inter-American Commission about relevant activities such
as press releases, events, hearings, and new reports: www.oas.org/en/media_center/subscription.asp;
• Follow the Inter-American Commission on Facebook and Twitter;
• Subscribe to receive email updates from the Inter-American Court about press releases, hearings and
new decisions: www.corteidh.or.cr/index.php/en/court-today/servicios-de-informacion.
GET TRAINING AND TRAIN OTHERS
• Organise training seminars for indigenous women so that they can learn about their rights and
available remedies;
• Organise training and awareness-raising seminars for civil society organisations and for lawyers, judges,
and other members of the country’s legal and judicial community, as well as the press;
• Develop training materials to disseminate information on the rights of indigenous women and
on available remedies;
• Ensure that all training and seminars include indigenous women’s voices, opinions and experiences
as training inputs.

PARTICIPATE
• Be visible. Take part in activities organised by other civil society organisations and use the opportunity to raise
awareness among the other participants about the situation of indigenous women within the country;
• Attend courses, workshops and conferences on human rights, indigenous rights and women’s rights. Ask
to give a presentation on the rights of indigenous women. Ask questions of the speakers regarding the
rights of indigenous women. Make an efort to include diferent individuals to speak and participate in activities;
• Encourage indigenous women to speak at events and meetings so that it does not appear that others
are speaking on their behalf.
FUNDS:
• Legal Assistance Fund of the Inter-American Commission for petitioners:
www.oas.org/en/iachr/mandate/Basics/fund.asp
• Victim’s Legal Assistance Fund of the Inter-American Court:
www.corteidh.or.cr/docs/regla_victimas/victimas_eng.pdf
• Funds for indigenous peoples to participate in UN-related meetings:
http://undesadspd.org/IndigenousPeoples/TrustFund/OtheropportunitesforfundingwithinUNSystem.aspx
5Introduction to the Toolkit on the Inter-American Human Rights System for Indigenous Women

5

UNITE
• Form a working group or network of organisations with similar aims in order to discuss strategies and to
coordinate promotional and advocacy activities for the rights of indigenous women – as a proverb says,
‘if you wish to go quickly, go by yourself, but if you wish to go far, go together’;
• Consider partnering with other credible organisations to denounce violations of indigenous women’s
rights by producing, among other things, reports on their human rights situation;
• Involve the media so that they can convey the message too.

PLAY THE ADVOCATE
• Seize every opportunity to advocate for the rights of indigenous women;
• Use the available forums to remind the government of its obligations under regional and
international law;
• Share reports and awareness-raising material with the government to provide information on the
human rights situation of indigenous women in the country;
• Remind the government of the recommendations made by the Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights and the monitoring mechanisms of the United Nations.

INVOLVE NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS
National human rights institutions, such as the Oice of the Ombudsman and the Oice of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights, exist in most countries. Making contact with these institutions and
sending them information and reports can be a good strategy. It is also good to invite them to come and
observe the situation ‘on the ground’. Many of these institutions work closely with civil society organisations,
thereby making it possible to develop joint strategies to achieve a greater impact in protecting the rights of
indigenous women. These institutions can also potentially serve as spokespersons at the national level.

Assembly of the Force of Wayuu Women. Colombia. Photo: Miguel Iván Ramírez Boscán
6

INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM: A TOOLKIT ON MECHANISMS

IWGIA, The Indigenous World, Latin-America, Canada and the
USA 2012. See also: Forest Peoples Programme, Forest Peoples
Numbers Across the World, 2012.
2
ILO Working Paper 1/2012, Indigenous Women Workers.
With case studies from Bangladesh, Nepal and the Americas,
by Diane Vinding and Ellen-Rose Kambel, International Labour
Organization, Geneva, 2012, p. 2 (footnotes omitted).
3
International Indigenous Women’s Forum, Mairin Iwanka Raya
Indigenous Women Stand Against Violence, A Companion Report
to the United Nations Secretary-General’s Study on Violence
Against Women, 2006, p. 7.
4
‘Gender Issues in Consultation Processes’, In: Cultural Survival
Quarterly, Issue 25.1, 2001; Cæcilie Mikkelsen, Indigenous Peoples,
Gender, and Natural Resource Management, DIIS Working Paper
no 2005/5.
5
This process was noted, among others, in Suriname by
indigenous women’s organisation Sanomaro Esa (Ellen-Rose
Kambel (ed), Indigenous Rights, Gender and Empowerment,
Stichting Sanomaro Esa/Global Law Association, Tilburg/
Paramaribo, 1999).
6
See for example the World Rainforest Movement report on
‘Mining and indigenous women in the Philippines’: http://wrm.org.
uy/articles,from,the,wrm,bulletin/section1/mining,and,indigenous,
women,in,the,philippines/
7
International Indigenous Women’s Forum, Mairin Iwanka Raya
Indigenous Women Stand Against Violence, A Companion Report
to the United Nations Secretary-General’s Study on Violence
Against Women, 2006, pp. 18–19.
8
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Access to Justice
for Women Victims of Sexual Violence: Education and Health,
OEA/Ser.L/V/II, Doc. 65, 28 December 2011.
9
See ILO Working Paper 1/2012, Indigenous Women Workers.
With case studies from Bangladesh, Nepal and the Americas,
by Diane Vinding and Ellen-Rose Kambel, International Labour
Organization, Geneva, 2012, p. 10 (noting that, for example in
Bolivia, 43 per cent of indigenous women are unable to speak a
language other than their native language, compared to 28 per
cent of men).
1

Introduction to the Toolkit on the Inter-American Human Rights System for Indigenous Women

Carmen Herrera et al., Indigenous Women of the Americas,
Methodological and conceptual guidelines to confront situations
of multiple discrimination, 2014, p 12.
11
Among others, Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Case
of the Yakye Axa Indigenous Community v. Paraguay, Merits,
reparations and costs. Judgment of June 17, 2005. Series C No. 12,
para. 137.
12
Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Case of the
Sawhoyamaxa Indigenous Community v. Paraguay. Merits,
reparations and costs. Judgment of March 29, 2006. Series C No.
146, para. 120.
13
See among others, Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Case
of Fernández Ortega et al. v. Mexico. Preliminary Objection, Merits,
Reparations, and Costs, Judgment of August 30, 2010. Series C No.
215; Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Case of Rosendo Cantú
and other v. Mexico, Preliminary Objection, Merits, Reparations,
and Costs, Judgment of August 31, 2010 Series C No. 216.
14
Thematic hearings were organised by the Commission in March
2013 (‘Situation of the Right to Life of Indigenous Women and
Girls in Canada’), March 2012 (‘Complaints regarding Missing
and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls in British Columbia,
Canada’ and ‘Discrimination against Indigenous Women in the
Americas’), October 2011 (‘Violence against Indigenous Women
in the United States’ and ‘Access to Education for Indigenous,
Peasant, Afro-descendant and Rural Women’), October 2006
(‘General Situation of the Rights of Indigenous Women in the
Americas – Argentina, Colombia, Canada, and Mexico’). The video
and audio of the hearings can be accessed here: http://www.
oas.org/es/cidh/audiencias/TopicsList.aspx?Lang=en&Topic=17.
Information Note #7 provides further analysis of the work of the
IACHR with regard to indigenous women’s human rights.
15
See among others: Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights, Access to Justice for Women Victims of Sexual Violence:
Education and Health, OEA/Ser.L/V/II, Doc. 65, 28 December
2011; and Inter-American Commission on Human Rights The
Work, Education and Resources of Women: The Road to Equality in
Guaranteeing Social, Economic and Cultural Rights, OEA/Ser.L/V/
II.143, Doc. 59, 3 November 2011.
10

7

Notes

1c Fosseway Business Centre, Stratford Road, Moreton-in-Marsh, GL56 9NQ, UK
T. +44 (0)1608 652893 F. +44 (0)1608 652878 info@forestpeoples.org www.forestpeoples.org
The Forest Peoples Programme is a company limited by guarantee (England & Wales).
Reg. No. 3868836, registered oice as above. UK-registered Charity No. 1082158.
It is also registered as a non-proit Stichting in the Netherlands.

Information Note #1
The Organization of
American States and the
Inter-American Human
Rights system
Author: Andrea Galindo / Editors: Valerie Couillard and Ellen-Rose Kambel

Photo: Johan Wildenhagen, Peru.

The Organization of American States (OAS) is the world’s irst regional organisation. It brings together all 35
independent states of the Americas. Its principal objectives are to achieve peace and justice, to promote
the independent states’ solidarity, to strengthen their collaboration, and to defend their sovereignty, their
territorial integrity, and their independence. The States Parties to the OAS have adopted several declarations
and treaties to protect human rights, including the rights of indigenous peoples and women. The organs
that are charged with supervising states’ compliance with their obligations are the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights and the Inter-American Court on Human Rights.
This Information Note introduces the diferent political and supervisory bodies of the OAS that are important
in the ield of human rights.

The Organization of American States:
history and foundation
The origins of the Organization of American States can be
traced back to 1889 when the First International Conference of American States resolved to create the International Union of American Republics. The OAS was formally
created in 1948, at the Ninth International Conference
of American States in Colombia, through the adoption of
the Charter of the Organization of American States (‘OAS
Charter’) (available at: www.oas.org/dil/treaties_A-41_
Charter_of_the_Organization_of_American_States.htm).
The OAS is the world’s oldest regional organisation.
In addition to adopting the OAS Charter, in 1948 the Member States adopted the American Declaration of the Rights
and Duties of Man (‘American Declaration’), which is the
world’s irst general international human rights instrument,
predating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The
American Declaration sets forth a vast array of civil and
political rights as well as social, economic and cultural
rights to be enjoyed by every person in addition to a series
of corresponding duties. The American Declaration is
examined in further detail in Information Note #2.
INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM: A TOOLKIT ON MECHANISMS

The OAS was established for Member States ‘to achieve
an order of peace and justice, to promote their solidarity,
to strengthen their collaboration, and to defend their sovereignty, their territorial integrity, and their independence’
(Article 1, OAS Charter). Among its principles are ‘the
fundamental rights of the individual without distinction as
to race, nationality, creed, or sex’ (Article 3(l), OAS Charter).
The OAS currently has 35 Member States: Antigua and
Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia,
Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Cuba, Dominica,
Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua,
Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia,
Saint Vicente and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad &
Tobago, United States of America, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
In July 2009, Honduras was suspended from the OAS as a result of the coup which ousted President José Manuel Zelaya.
The OAS’s headquarters are in Washington, DC, and it has
oices in several countries throughout the western hemisphere. A Permanent Secretariat works from the main
headquarters, providing administrative support.
1

Structure of the OAS
According to the OAS Charter, the organisation has two
political bodies which play an important role in the ield
of human rights: the General Assembly and the Permanent Council. In addition, over the last two decades, a
series of Summits, gathering together a large number of
State authorities, has taken on major importance for the
organisation.
Summits of the Americas
The Summits of the Americas are the meetings of the
Heads of State of the Member States to discuss and
take action on political, economic and social aspects of
particular interest to the region. Since 1994 there have
been six Summits: Miami, USA in 1994; Santiago de Chile,
Chile in 1998; Quebec City, Canada in 2001; Mar del Plata,
Argentina in 2005; Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago in
2009; and Cartagena, Colombia in 2012. In addition, two
Special Summits on Sustainable Development were held
in Bolivia in 1996 and in Mexico in 2004 respectively. The

next summit will take place in Panama.
During each Summit, the Heads of State assume certain
commitments. These can be found in a document
called Declarations, in which they highlight the main
issues of concern. Each Summit has a theme that
frames all the decisions taken that year. A Plan of
Action is also produced to tackle those issues. These
actions are translated into a variety of mandates. The
Summit Secretariat has created a follow-up system for
each mandate (www.summit-americas.org/sisca.html).
The Summit mandates provide a powerful means of
understanding the Inter-American agenda: these are the
issues of most importance to the States of the western
hemisphere.
In the course of the Summits, several Declarations on
Indigenous Peoples have been issued and Plans of Action have addressed issues of importance for indigenous
peoples. These are reviewed in Information Note #2.

Indigenous peoples’ participation
The Summits of the Americas provide an opportunity for indigenous peoples’ and other civil society organisations to participate in the work of the OAS. At each of the Summits held so far, the Heads of State and
Government have recognised the importance of including civil society in order to strengthen democracy.
They have encouraged governments to cooperate with civil society organisations in the formulation and
implementation of development policies and programmes and have acknowledged the powerful role of
social actors in the consolidation of democracy.
The Secretariat of the Summits of the Americas actively cooperates with civil society organisations to
provide opportunities for their continued participation in the activities of the OAS. Moreover, through the
OAS General Secretariat and the Committee on Inter-American Summits Management and Civil Society
Participation in OAS Activities, the OAS has developed a number of initiatives to create opportunities for
participation and discussion and to report on Summit policy developments in the Inter-American system.
Such initiatives include:
• Regional forums and discussions organised by civil society organisations, with support from the OAS, to
aford opportunities for policy-making and implementation and follow-up to the Summit mandates;
• Presentation of proposals and recommendations resulting from a series of national and regional consultations held with various actors on topics on the regional agenda, covering social, political, economic, and
cultural issues;
• Establishment of strategic networks of civil society organisations, governments, and inter-American and
international organisations to exchange information and provide feedback on implementation and follow-up
of the Summit mandates;
• Institutionalisation of dialogue between civil society organisations and high-ranking national oicials from
Ministries of Foreign Afairs to exchange views on policy design and the fulilment of Summit mandates;

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INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM: A TOOLKIT ON MECHANISMS

Market Day in the municipality of Palín. Photos from the Archive of the Poqomam Linguistic Community, ALMG. Photo: ALMG
Information note #1 The Organization of American States and the Inter-American Human Rights system

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• Holding special meetings with civil society organisations during meetings of the Summit Implementation
Review Group (SIRG) to exchange information on the Summit Process; and
• Elaboration of strategies to engage various social actors more efectively, including through the use of
Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), such as the Summits Virtual Community.
Participating in activities organised in the context of the Summits ofers an excellent opportunity to
contribute to greater awareness on the part of government authorities and members of civil society with
regard to the situation of indigenous women in the Americas. Indigenous peoples’ representatives, and
civil society members in general, can also join the Summits of the Americas Virtual Community (SVC), an
interactive website. The SVC brings together representatives of civil society organisations, international
organisations, workers and union representatives, indigenous peoples, Afro-descendants, and members
of the private and academic sectors, among others. Their participation enables ongoing discussion on the
progress made, the challenges being faced and the regional collaboration in place for implementation of
the mandates and commitments of the Summits of the Americas. More information on this useful platform
can be found at http://svc.summit-americas.org/.
Information on meetings and activities in which NGOs can participate can be found at
www.summit-americas.org/cs_meet.html.
Publications relating to civil society participation in the Summit Process are available at
www.summit-americas.org/cs_pub.html.

General Assembly
The General Assembly is the supreme body of the
Organization of American States and is composed of all
Member States. Each Member State has the right to one
vote in the General Assembly and is usually represented
by the State’s Minister of Foreign Afairs. The General
Assembly meets at least once a year, but can hold special
sessions as approved by the Permanent Council. Goals,

policies, and actions of the OAS are determined by
the General Assembly. Its functions are deined in
Chapter IX of the OAS Charter.
The General Assembly has adopted several resolutions
on the rights of indigenous peoples and the rights
of women. These are reviewed in Information
Note #2.

Indigenous peoples’ participation
Several networks allow indigenous peoples’ and other civil society organisations to participate in the
activities of the General Assembly. While these organisations cannot participate or intervene in the formal
debates surrounding resolutions, they have the opportunity to make general statements. There are also
parallel events organised by civil society organisations when the General Assembly meets.
Over the years, participation of civil society organisations has gained importance and a formal dialogue has
now been instituted between civil society organisations and members of State delegations, run in parallel
with the General Assembly meetings. More information on how civil society organisations can play a role at
the General Assembly level can be found at www.oas.org/en/ser/dia/civil_society/index.shtml. See also the
Introduction to the Toolkit with more tips on how indigenous peoples and women can participate.

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INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM: A TOOLKIT ON MECHANISMS

Permanent Council
The Permanent Council reports to the General Assembly. Its
powers are assigned under Chapter XII of the OAS Charter
and other inter-American instruments, and include functions
entrusted to it by the General Assembly. It is based at the
OAS’s headquarters in Washington, DC, and is composed
of ambassadors of Member States. The Permanent Council
is responsible for maintaining friendly relations among
Member States and for assisting them in cases of dispute.
It oversees the operations of the Organization’s Secretariat
and considers reports of the organs, agencies, and entities
of the Inter-American system and presents observations
and recommendations to the General Assembly.

The Permanent Council has various committees: the
General Committee, the Committee on Juridical and Political Afairs, the Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Afairs, the Committee on Hemispheric Security,
and the Committee on Inter-American Summits Management and Civil Society Participation in OAS Activities.
It can establish other committees, sub-committees, and
working groups, as needed. It has done so in the past; for
example, in 1999 it created a working group to develop
a draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples.

Indigenous peoples’ participation
Indigenous peoples and civil society can attend the meetings of the Permanent Council and also lobby for
resolutions related to issues of their own interest. They can also participate in the working groups set up by
the Permanent Council. One example is the Working Group to Prepare the Draft American Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples, in which the participation of indigenous peoples has been key to advancing the
negotiations. The American Declaration on Indigenous People is explained further in Information Note #2.

Overview of the Inter-American Human
Rights System
The States Parties to the Organization of American States
have adopted a series of instruments (Declarations and
Treaties) to protect certain rights. These form the basis of
the Inter-American Human Rights System. The system is
composed of two main organs: the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (‘IACHR’ or ‘Commission’), and
the Inter-American Court on Human Rights (‘IA Court’ or
‘Court’). Within this system certain rights are protected
and the States have clear obligations to promote and
protect those rights. The main function of the system’s
principal organs is to supervise State compliance with
these obligations and to act in the case of violation of a
right protected under its instruments.

and Duties of Man (‘American Declaration’) in 1948. In
November 1969 the Inter-American Specialized Conference on Human Rights was held in San José, Costa Rica,
at which OAS Member States adopted the American
Convention on Human Rights (‘American Convention’
or ‘Convention’). Ever since, the system has expanded
the scope and deepened the protection of those rights
through more concrete and binding obligations, such as
those contained in instruments like the protocols and
conventions on specialised matters. These include the
Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture; the Convention on Forced Disappearance of Persons; and the Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication
of Violence against Women, among others; as well as the
Rules of Procedure and Statutes of its bodies.

The Inter-American system formally came into being with
the approval of the American Declaration of the Rights

All these developments have taken place within the
framework of the OAS.

Organs of the Inter-American system
Principal human rights bodies
• Inter-American Commission
on Human Rights
• Inter-American Court on
Human Rights

Political organs of the OAS
• Summits of the Americas
• General Assembly
• Permanent Council

Information
note #1 The Organization of American States and the Inter-American Human Rights system
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Other human rights bodies
• Inter-American Council for Integral
Development (Protocol of San
Salvador)
• Inter-American Commission of Women

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The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
became operational in 1960. It is an autonomous body
composed of seven experts in human rights who act
in their personal capacity, i.e. they do not represent the
State of which they are nationals. However, States elect
members to the Commission through the OAS General
Assembly. Given that it is the Commissioners who decide
on cases, formulate the agenda, and carry out all the
Commission’s activities, its composition is key in guaranteeing full respect of human rights. Civil society organisations, therefore, carry out important advocacy work
to ensure that the elected candidates are capable and
knowledgeable with respect to human rights.
The Commission’s headquarters are in Washington, DC,
where its Executive Secretariat is based. The Executive
Secretariat provides legal and administrative support
to assist the Commission in performing its functions. It
is organised in regional sections (Andean I; Andean II;
Southern Cone; Mexico, Central America and the Spanishspeaking Caribbean countries; and the rest of the Caribbean and non-Spanish-speaking countries). In addition,
the Secretariat gives support to Thematic Rapporteurships and special groups such as those responsible for
the protection of rights (with responsibility for precautionary measures), Court and Friendly Settlements.
In 1969 the American Convention on Human Rights
(‘American Convention’) (available at www.cidh.org/Basicos/English/Basic3.American%20Convention.htm) was
adopted. This legal instrument guarantees a wide range
of human rights, and deines the functions and procedures of the Commission and Court, as reviewed below.
The functions of the Inter-American Commission are
deined in Article 41 of the American Convention:
The main function of the Commission shall be to promote
respect for and defense of human rights. In the exercise
of its mandate, it shall have the following functions and
powers:
a. to develop an awareness of human rights among the
peoples of America;
b. to make recommendations to the governments of the
member states, when it considers such action advisable, for the adoption of progressive measures in favor
of human rights within the framework of their domestic
law and constitutional provisions as well as appropriate
measures to further the observance of those rights;
6

c. to prepare such studies or reports as it considers advisable in the performance of its duties;
d. to request the governments of the member states to
supply it with information on the measures adopted by
them in matters of human rights;
e. to respond, through the General Secretariat of the
Organization of American States, to inquiries made by
the member states on matters related to human rights
and, within the limits of its possibilities, to provide those
states with the advisory services they request;
f. to take action on petitions and other communications
pursuant to its authority under the provisions of Articles
44 through 51 of this Convention; and
g. to submit an annual report to the General Assembly of
the Organization of American States.
The Commission’s on-site visits, reports and hearings
are discussed in Information Note #3. Information about
the Rapporteurships can be found in Information Note
#4 and the Petition system is analysed in Information
Note #5.
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights is the other
main body of the Inter-American human rights system. It
is an autonomous judicial institution established in 1979.
The Court is composed of seven judges selected from
among the human rights experts of Member States’ nationals (Article 52, American Convention). The judges act
in an individual capacity (rather than as representatives
of their States). They are elected by the States that have
accepted the jurisdiction of the Court. As with the Commissioners, civil society carries out advocacy activities in
order to ensure that the selected members of the Court
have a thorough knowledge of and experience in human
rights.
The Inter-American Court has two main functions: (1)
to adjudicate (decide) cases (see Information Note #6)
which are binding on the States that are party to the case;
and (2) to issue advisory opinions (in Spanish: Opiniones
Consultivas or ‘OC’). The Commission, States Parties to
the American Convention and OAS bodies can request
the Court to issue advisory opinions regarding the
interpretation of the American Convention. Additionally,
the Inter-American Commission on Women can request
an advisory opinion from the Court on the Inter-American
Convention on Violence against Women (Convention
INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM: A TOOLKIT ON MECHANISMS

of Belém do Pará). The Inter-American Commission on
Women is a specialised organ of the OAS established
in 1928 (see Information Note #8). This advisory
competence strengthens the capacity of the organisation
to resolve matters that arise from application of the
Convention, since it allows the OAS bodies to consult
the Court on topics relating to them.
The Court has thus far issued 20 advisory opinions.
In some instances, advisory opinions have referred to
speciic provisions of the Convention, such as restrictions
on the death penalty (OC-3), habeas corpus (OC-8), or
restrictions to rights under states of emergency (OC-9).
In other cases, they have referred to a speciic country,
such as the proposition for amendments to the Costa
Rican Constitution (OC-2). Finally, they have also referred
to the scope of the functions of other OAS bodies, such

as OC-15 and OC-19, which looked at the functions of the
Inter-American Commission.
In terms of contentious jurisdiction, the Court covers all
cases which concern the interpretation and application
of the provisions of the American Convention, provided
that States Parties to a case have recognised the
jurisdiction of the Court, whether by special declaration
or by a special agreement (Article 62(3), American
Convention).
As of June 2014, 22 States had accepted the Court’s
contentious jurisdiction: Argentina, Barbados, Bolivia,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic,
Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico,
Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad &
Tobago, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

Indigenous Ayoreo bracelets made from caraguatá ibre. Paraguay. Photo: TEKOHA Con Los Pueblos Indígenas.
7Information note #1 The Organization of American States and the Inter-American Human Rights system

7

Notes

1c Fosseway Business Centre, Stratford Road, Moreton-in-Marsh, GL56 9NQ, UK
T. +44 (0)1608 652893 F. +44 (0)1608 652878 info@forestpeoples.org www.forestpeoples.org
The Forest Peoples Programme is a company limited by guarantee (England & Wales).
Reg. No. 3868836, registered oice as above. UK-registered Charity No. 1082158.
It is also registered as a non-proit Stichting in the Netherlands.

Information Note #2
Legal instruments and
norms pertaining to the
rights of indigenous
peoples and women
Women of the Force of Wayuu Women. Colombia.

Author: Andrea Galindo / Editors: Valerie Couillard and Ellen-Rose Kambel

Photo: Miguel Iván Ramírez Boscán

While there are no speciic legal instruments that protect indigenous women in the Inter-American system,
this Information Note brings together key legal instruments pertaining to human rights, the rights of indigenous peoples, and the rights of women, which can be used to support advocacy activities and calls for the
rights of indigenous women to be respected. It is recommended that indigenous peoples and civil society
organisations appeal to these instruments in their eforts to develop further norms applicable to indigenous
women and peoples.
This Information Note analyses the American Declaration, American Convention, Protocol of San Salvador,
Convention of Belém do Pará and the Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It also will
examine documents and resolutions of the political bodies of the OAS, speciically related to indigenous
peoples’ rights, which may be relevant to indigenous women. Finally, it lists other inter-American and international standards that may be useful. Information Note #7 provides examples of ways in which the Court
and the Commission have applied the instruments to protect